Chef Wong cooks up
first-class deal with
Aloha Air

By Russ Lynch
Star-Bulletin

Chef Alan Wong has signed on with Aloha Airlines for two years as the food and wine consultant for the 12-seat first-class compartment in Aloha's upcoming Hawaii-Oakland service.

Aloha will launch the Honolulu-Oakland route, its first to the mainland, on Feb. 14.

The master chef said he has been working on menus already, marrying elements of different ethnic cooking styles with fine island-grown ingredients. Wong calls the arrangement a "partnership to Northern California," joining a Hawaii approach to food with the best California wines.

Wong operates Alan Wong's Restaurant at 1857 S. King St., the Pineapple Room in the Ala Moana Liberty House, and the Hawaii Regional Cuisine Marketplace, also at Liberty House, which specializes in island-made and island-grown products.

Aloha Airlines announced Aug. 19 that it would begin Oakland service in February to provide travelers with a more-convenient mainland gateway than the big San Francisco airport.

The airline will use a long-range Boeing 737 aircraft with 12 seats in first class and 112 in coach. All passengers will be served lunch on the flight leaving Oakland daily at 10:30 a.m. and dinner on the flight leaving Honolulu at 3:10 p.m.

Coach-class catering is by Dobbs International Services Inc. in Honolulu and LSG Sky Chefs in Oakland.

Two weeks after the Valentine's Day Honolulu start, Aloha will begin daily Oakland-Maui service.

Round-trip fares posted for the startup of Honolulu service start at $402, about $20 below competing services that stop in Los Angeles.